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Widely acknowledged as the "bible" of film and video production and used in courses around the world, this indispensable guide to making movies is now updated with the latest advances in high- definition formats. For students and teachers, the professional and the novice filmmaker, this clear and comprehensive handbook remains the reliable reference to all aspects of moviemaking.

Techniques for making narrative, documentary, corporate, experimental and feature films.

Working with high-definition and standard-definition digital video formats, including DV, HD, and HDV.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"You need this book. Billed as the authoritative guide to filmmaking from fundraising to distribution, the book achieves this in clear, accessible language using current up-to-date information. It's easy to see why this has become a standard text in many film schools. A gilt-edged investment for aspiring and beginning filmmakers and it would not be out of place in the libraries of experienced professionals either." -James MacGregor, Netribution.co.uk

"This edition of the book is awesome. I don't know how you managed it. Such a mass of information so expertly organized and so clearly presented! Amazing." -Alfred Guzzetti, Professor, Harvard University

“Anyone who is serious about learning the language and techniques of this art, whether amateur or professional, must have this comprehensive reference.” - Bookviews

“Speaking as a member of the 'figure it out yourself' camp, I consider most 'technical' reference books to be nothing more than leisure reading. This one is worth its salt. Every page is relevant and fascinating. When I find a chapter that refers to something we've done, I realize that every mistake we made was covered, if only we'd thought to read up beforehand.” - Genericfilms.com

"I was thrilled to find your book, which is a gem. No matter what corner of the subject I poked into, looking for cogent explanations, the Handbook passed with flying colors. So please accept my admiration, appreciation and thanks." -Pat Jackson, Associate Professor, San Francisco State University; Emmy-winning Supervising Sound Editor

Top customer reviews

This may not be the most in-depth filmmaking guide in the world, but it certainly must be the most broad. The sheer breadth of well-explained concepts and principles makes this handbook the most useful practical guidebook I've ever read.

There's a ton of material in here that will probably not apply to you. Not working with film? You could probably skip "The Film Camera" and "The Film Image." Or if you're handing your footage off to another editor, skip the sections on editing. But I would suggest another direction: Read it all, from cover to cover. The text is all interesting, well-written, and absolutely packed with great information. Even if you never touch a roll of 16 or 35mm film in your life, understanding where we came from and why we've adopted certain standards is knowledge well worth having.

I had been making short films and videos for years before picking up this book, and I was amazed at how much I learned. I realized how many things I had been doing wrong - I was unaware of so many best practices and techniques that my next few films were notably more polished and better executed.

In short, the book won't make you a professional, but it will make you MORE professional.

I'm actually reading this book from cover to cover. Every now and then, I do skip a section- say, like when they talk about film equipment, as opposed to video (which I shoot.) It's very technical, but I believe that knowing the technical issues and technology is essential. Despite the technical bent, the book also has plenty of information on other aspects of film making, such as continuity, mise en scene, etc. I suppose that if you want to get more granular vis a vis the more artistic aspects of film making, you might want to add other books to your library as well. I am very glad I purchased this book.

It is described as the Bible of filmmaking in many blogs. By all means, they are 100% right. It is a very technical book, that goes over each and every step in the development of a film, describing technology, physics, people, budgeting. Definitely worth leading and constantly review again afterwards if you are serious about filmmaking

This book is SUPER detailed. I have the kindle version, and use it as reading material while the sleeping pills kick in. Yes, it's dry and technical... but what do you expect of such an exhaustive tome on filmmaking. I feel like film school won't be worth the money by the time I'm done reading this cover to cover. Looking forward to finishing it (in the next month... melatonin works!)

This book is a must have for any budding film maker. It's thick and daunting at first glance, with overwhelming amounts of technical information and more than anyone could really take in upon first reading. I purchased it as a text book for a film class, but have NEVER had a more useful text book that I will actually keep, refer to, and recommend forever! It's worth a full read through (get those hi-lighters and a pen for notes handy) to get an overall idea of how cameras work, how to choose and use sound and lighting equipment, and so much more. Then keep as a reference to answer almost any problem that arises!

Just read it cover to cover (skimming the parts on older technology, like 16 and 35mm film - everything is digital now) and it was extremely helpful. I've written four screenplays and have been contemplating producing one of my low-budget shorts. I knew next to nothing about filmmaking and this was a deep dive into all aspects of the craft. Very well written. I started with the book, How to Shoot Video that Doesn't Suck, which makes for a good companion to this (and is lighter reading). I plan to reread both.